Emergency Roof Repair questions answered in plain English

Send the 3-tap form at any time. The roofer rings back 6am to 7pm, seven days a week. If there's a danger to life, such as a wall or chimney about to fall onto a road, ring 112 or 999.

A few slipped slates are €350 to €1,100, a chimney flashing €650 to €2,500 and storm damage €600 to €3,000+. The roofer gives you the price after seeing it, and nothing is agreed until you accept. What a roof repair costs has every job.

Storm damage is usually covered, wear and tear isn't. Insurers usually pay for temporary repairs, so keep the receipts. Your excess, generally €100 to €300, comes off any claim. The insurance claim guide has the steps.

Not in wind or rain, and not without someone holding the ladder. Most of what the roofer needs to know you can see from the ground or the attic.

That's the job of the first visit: refix or replace what's off, or cover it, so no more water gets in. The proper repair follows in dry weather if it's needed.

Louth, Meath, Monaghan, Cavan and north Dublin: Dundalk, Drogheda, Ardee, Navan, Ashbourne, Trim, Kells, Monaghan town, Carrickmacross, Castleblayney, Clones, Cavan town, Virginia, Bailieborough, Cootehill, Swords, Balbriggan, Malahide, Skerries, and the towns and townlands between.

No. We pass your request to one roofing company that covers your area. They price the job, do the work and deal with you directly.

No roofer can safely work on a wet pitched roof during active gale-force gusts. While high winds are still blowing, we carry out internal water containment and ground- or ladder-accessible make-safes, then get onto the roof for external tarping or repair as soon as gusts drop to safe working limits.

Most Irish home insurance policies cover both the emergency make-safe cost and permanent repair when damage is caused by a sudden storm event or fallen tree, minus your policy excess (typically €250 to €500). Insurers do not cover leaks caused by gradual ageing, worn-out felt, or lack of maintenance, which is why clear before-and-after photos are essential.

Yes. While torch-on felt and standard GRP resin need a dry deck, moisture-curing polyurethane liquid membranes and emergency butyl/bitumen repair systems bond directly to damp felt, lead and fibreglass to stop active dripping immediately.

Rainwater entering through a slipped slate or cracked ridge cap often runs down the top of the sarking felt or along the underside of a rafter until it hits a tear, nail hole or ceiling joist several metres away, then tracks to the lowest opening in the plasterboard—usually a downlighter or ceiling rose.

Yes. If water is dripping near a ceiling rose, spotlight, attic junction box or smoke alarm, switch off the lighting circuit breaker at your consumer unit (fuse board) straight away and place a bucket under the drip.

When a temporary tarpaulin or emergency patch is needed first and we return to carry out a larger permanent repair on the same section, the initial make-safe work is itemized clearly on your quote and invoice so you are not paying twice for the same access and preparation.